Midwest region inflation calculator: CPI-U since 1966

The CPI-U for the Midwest region, a monthly BLS index since December 1966. Choose an amount and two dates.

U.S. average, a metro area, a region or a city-size class

Value in September 2026

$186.78

$100.00 in 2000 average buys what $186.78 buys in September 2026, Midwest.

Cumulative price change+86.8 %
Average per year+2.41 %
Index, 2000 average168.3
Index, September 2026314.359
U.S. average over the same dates$195.67 (+95.7 %)
BLS seriesCUUR0200SA0
How this is computed

Prepared by Radif Partners · How the figures are built · BLS series CUUR0200SA0, priced every month

The Midwest CPI-U was up 4.2 % over the 12 months to September 2026, above the 3.7 % of the U.S. city average. This regional index from the Bureau of Labor Statistics covers urban consumers in the East North Central and West North Central census divisions, is published every month and uses the base 1982-84=100. It is the natural index for an amount tied to a Midwest town that is not one of the four metros with their own series: Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, St. Louis. Over the latest 12 months, energy moved +22.0 % in the region and transportation +8.4 %. In the 2021 to 2023 surge the region's 12-month rate peaked at 9.5 % in June 2022. Since the 2020 annual average, $1,000 has needed $1,310 at Midwest prices, compared with $1,302 on the national index.

Who uses the Midwest index

The region is built from every urban area the BLS samples in the Midwest, metropolitan and micropolitan, not only from its four big metros. A rent clause in a smaller city or a wage reopener for a plant outside the big four needs an index with a value every month, and the Midwest series fits that need. The agency writes that it urges users "to consider adopting the national or regional CPIs for use in escalator clauses", because a local index has a far smaller sample (BLS questions and answers). Quote it as series CUUR0200SA0, not seasonally adjusted.

The four metros and their calendars

Chicago (every month), Detroit (in even months), Minneapolis-St. Paul (in odd months), St. Louis (in even months) are part of the region and are also published alone. Over each one's latest 12 months, Detroit was the fastest at +3.7 % and Chicago the slowest at +2.9 %, while the region as a whole stood at +4.2 %. The spread is a reminder of why the BLS calls local indexes volatile: part of any gap between two metros is real price change, part is sampling error.

Every spending group in the Midwest

Midwest, September 2025 to September 2026

+4.2 %

Energy+22.0 %
Transportation+8.4 %
Shelter+4.4 %
Apparel+4.2 %
Open the full calculator →

Energy, cars and groceries

Transportation holds gasoline, vehicles and their upkeep. Over the latest 12 months it moved +8.4 % in the Midwest against +7.9 % nationally, with energy at +22.0 % against +20.4 %. Food at home was +1.5 % and shelter +4.4 %. These regional group series start in January 1997.

The 2021 to 2023 surge, in the region

The region's surge peaked higher than the nation's. Its 12-month rate reached 9.5 % in June 2022, against a national peak of 9.1 % in June 2022. On annual averages, prices rose 5.1 % in 2021 and 8.0 % in 2022, then 3.8 % in 2023 and 2.7 % in 2024. At the low end of the record since 1968 sits 2009, when the regional average moved -0.6 %.

Monthly, so October 2025 is missing

No index exists for October 2025, in the Midwest or anywhere: the BLS collected no prices during the lapse in appropriations. A monthly series like this one feels it directly. The calculator uses September 2025 for an October 2025 date and says so, the 2025 annual average is built from 11 months, and the October 2025 page covers the rest.

Midwest CPI by spending group

Midwest region, CPI-U not seasonally adjusted. All items: base 1982-84=100; each group keeps the base period of its own BLS series, so compare the changes, not the levels.
IndexLevelLatest month12-month change
All items314.359September 2026+4.2 %
Housing320.556September 2026+4.1 %
Shelter387.691September 2026+4.4 %
Food and beverages335.295September 2026+2.5 %
Food at home304September 2026+1.5 %
Energy316.704September 2026+22.0 %
Transportation284.061September 2026+8.4 %
Medical care584.937September 2026+1.7 %
Apparel132.573September 2026+4.2 %
Recreation152.08September 2026+3.8 %
Education and communication148.437September 2026+2.5 %
Other goods and services592.634September 2026+2.6 %
All items less food and energy316.161September 2026+3.0 %

Midwest inflation by year

Annual averages published by the BLS. The 2025 average leaves out the missing October.
YearAnnual averageChangeDecember to December
2025298.433+2.8 %+2.7 %
2024290.37+2.7 %+3.0 %
2023282.76+3.8 %+3.2 %
2022272.401+8.0 %+6.0 %
2021252.242+5.1 %+7.5 %
2020240.04+1.0 %+1.1 %
2019237.776+1.5 %+2.3 %
2018234.29+1.9 %+1.3 %
2017229.874+1.7 %+1.7 %
2016226.115+0.8 %+1.8 %
2015224.21-0.5 %-0.0 %
2014225.425+1.5 %+0.7 %
2013222.17+1.4 %+1.0 %
2012219.1+2.0 %+1.8 %
2011214.743+3.2 %+2.8 %
2010208.046+2.0 %+1.8 %

Questions people ask

What is the current Midwest inflation rate?

4.2 % for the 12 months to September 2026, on the CPI-U for the Midwest region, not seasonally adjusted. The U.S. city average was 3.7 %. The region is published every month, the same day as the national figures, so it is always current to the latest release.

Which CPI should I use for a small town in the Midwest?

Usually the Midwest region index, unless your contract names another one. The BLS publishes local indexes only for four metros in the region and advises users to consider the national or regional CPI for escalator clauses. If the town is small, the Size Class B/C index for smaller cities is a second option to discuss.

How high did Midwest inflation go in 2022?

The 12-month rate of the Midwest CPI-U peaked at 9.5 % in June 2022, its highest reading of the 2021 to 2023 period. For the year as a whole, the 2022 annual average was 8.0 % above 2021. The national peak in that period was 9.1 %, in June 2022.

Keep going

CPI by city

The 23 metro areas the BLS publishes, their rhythm, latest month and 12-month inflation, side by side.

Chicago inflation

+2.9 % over the 12 months to September 2026, from the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI CPI-U.

Detroit inflation

+3.7 % over the 12 months to August 2026, from the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI CPI-U.

Smaller cities (Size B/C) inflation

+3.8 % over the 12 months to September 2026, from the Size Class B/C (metro and micro areas under 2.5 million) CPI-U.

Energy inflation

Gasoline, electricity and natural gas in the CPI: the 2026 jump, energy by metro, and its weight in the basket.

Official sources for this page

Prepared by

Independent publisher of inflation calculators built month by month from the CPI-U indexes of the 23 metro areas, 4 regions and 2 city-size classes

Indexes last loaded on · Editorial policy · Contact

Results apply the published CPI indexes to the amount you type. An index tracks the average prices paid by urban consumers in an area, not your own budget, and it does not compare price levels between cities. A month the BLS did not publish is never filled in: the calculator names the index it uses instead.

Indexes through September 2026, BLS files read on